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THE STRIDING REPORT | Issue 102 8 In the absence of a report (or anything else) from our Captain I’ve been asked to fill in with a brief write up of the goings on in the men’s section. Unfortunately the Cross Country season is now over so I don’t Neil Kelly have the chance to waffle on for days about that… with the exception of the Inter Counties Championship! As you’ll no doubt be aware we had representatives in this for the first time (to the best of my knowledge) with Martin Swensson and James McNally both being selected to represent Merseyside. Not only that, but both succeeded in finishing as counters with impressive overall places (129 and 141 respectively). James, to his credit, obviously realised he’s ‘a bit of a wool’ and tried his best not to run (he locked himself out of his flat with his spikes inside) but Martin wasn’t taking no for an answer and between them they managed to corner an unsuspecting schoolboy (size 12 feet) and get him to hand over his shoes, which luckily were an exact match for the incarcerated pair. Initial reports suggest they didn’t need to flush the schoolboys head in the toilet bowl. Martin showed the benefits of a full cross-country season when he matched Maria and beat his own marathon club record at London – male and female marathon club records in the space of 2 months shows the clubs in fine shape. James ran some impressive races too including a club record for 5 miles at the Run the Bridge race and then winning the NSPCC Sandstone Trail 10k in a time we suspect to be a course record. Nigel Grant has begun to compensate for the loss of many of his long standing club records with what will no doubt turn into a remorseless assault on the V50 records – only 5k so far (18:11) but there will no doubt be more to follow. In the same age group it was also good to see a return to racing for erstwhile cyclist and occasional runner John Kelly. A special mention too for Jon Toft and Dave Lovatt who secured selection to the GB team at the Oulton park duathlon. Though logistical difficulties might make it difficult for Jon to take part he’s planning on compensating with an assault on the aquathlon team… phew! Elsewhere Dale Higham underwent his own personal ‘Mad March’ and despite the odd hiccup managed to clock PBs at 10k, 10 mile and halfmarathon. Colin Dobbs has had a similar recent frenzy adding excellent PBs at 5 mile 10k and the half. It’s also good to see Graham Halsall return with a 10k PB after a layoff with stress fractures. Andy Cantwell continued his quest to run a ridiculous amount of races in a calendar year (a 5k, a 10k and a half marathon every month) through March and showed that there is no substitute for racing by clocking PBs in a fair few of them. In other marathon news Rob Hardwick and yours truly cracked PBs in Seville and there were fine performances from all round at London where Paul Riley, Lyndon Easthope, Mitch Hawkins, Andy Keeley, Adrian Loughrey, Andrew Leslie and Graeme Hind clocked fine times. Wow, what a busy, but successful couple of months since the last issue! We have achieved great things, both on and off road all over Europe it would seem. Captain’s Log Jane Hallows Not sure where to start with the Liverpool (aka Penny Lane Striders) Half Marathon, what a turn out. There were black and white vests in view all along the course (many of which seemed to pass me as I trudged along the prom!), matched only by the number of enthusiastic supporters. We had a whole host of PBs, a great PLS début by Rachel Williams leading the ladies home and we got second prize in the team event – well done to everyone. Then came the disappointment of the road relays being cancelled by snow (the weather was lovely in Banff that day!!!) But, the Runcorn Bridge 5 went ahead producing another PB for Fiona, Emma and Ellie Darby both ran really well (Ellie won the junior prize!) and resulted in us winning the team prize. Not to be left out, those who enjoy the trails have been flying the black and white flag too. Susan Cain was first in her age category in the Cockermouth multi-terrain race, and Cristina was second lady at the ever popular Roddlesworth Roller. Watch out for both of these races next year as all finishers at Cockermouth got an Easter egg and the cakes after Roddlesworth are legendary! Spring is eventually in the air and recent marathons have produced some amazing performances. First off was the ‘Maraton de Sevilla’, where Maria not only smashed her PB but also broke Cath Nevin’s longstanding club record with an incredible time of 3 hours 1 minute, looking outrageously fresh and strong whilst passing her ‘other half’(!)in the final kilometres as I cheered her on!. Susan Cain was in the prizes again as winner of her age category in the Blackpool Marathon, Myka improved her PB in Paris with Cristina trying to sneak this one in as a training run (you can’t hide your achievements in this club!) The London Marathon brings us nicely into the new championship season. I saw at least two PLS vests on the telly so well done to Rachel and Jane. Best of luck to those who are still marathon training for Manchester and beyond. Take a good look at the multi-terrain championship fixtures for the new season, there are some fab off road races coming up. They usually involve trails, good views, fresh air, food/beer tents, summer fates and even the ‘odd’ weekend away. In particular, look out for Man v Horse in June (www.green-events.co.uk you need to book your accommodation soon) and Race the Train in August (www.racethetrain.com camping if you’re brave enough!) These are two of my favourite races, and not just because they are in Wales. The MT season finished with a bang then a whimper. There was an impressive turn out at Parbold where the old faithfuls where out in force and there were welcome MT CT debuts (I think) from Oz Fry and Chris Anderson. I squeezed past John Connolly on the home straight for the second time to make it first home (sorry John). Unfortunately we couldn’t match this at Roddlesworth though kudos to those hardy troopers who made the trip and especially MTCT advocate/foghorn Simone Capponi. I can’t recommend these championship races highly enough – they are suitable for all and everyone who takes part enjoys them. Checkout the 2013-14 MTCT links on the web for future races – we’ve already had the first and it was a beautiful (though windy) morning stroll. I look forward to seeing you all at the awards night to find out who last year’s winners were. All the best for a successful and healthy season. If you have any questions or suggestions see me on club nights or alternatively my e-mail address is jane.ski@tiscali.co.uk
THE STRIDING REPORT | Issue 102 9 A year of racing By Lawrence Eccles Last year John Connolly produced an annual a-z of races. When Lawrence suggested he would document his 2012-13 season I thought what a great idea. What I didn’t realise is that he’d need his own personal magazine. Don’t say you never get tips for different races. I hope you’re sitting comfortably, cos this is going to take a while. Date Race Pos Time Length (km) 21/04/2012 Teenager with Altitude Climb (m) 23 03:31:20 24.8 2318 28/04/2012 Fellsman 30 14:36:00 93.3 3546 05/05/2012 12/05/2012 19/05/2012 23/05/2012 03/06/2012 05/06/2012 09/06/2012 10/06/2012 Coniston Fell Race Sandstone Trail Old County Tops Harrock Hill Race Les 4000 Marches Thurstaston MT Challenge Welsh 1000m Peaks E Race Welsh Castles Relay 66 01:34:33 14.0 1065 12 05:29:13 52.6 1035 35 09:18:00 59.0 3050 22 00:37:03 8.4 275 30 01:21:30 11.0 1214 6 00:38:30 10.0 N/A 1 01:54:51 13.0 1400 4 00:55:56 14.7 N/A Comments After a break from races I come ‘out of retirement’ for this one. The figures speak for themselves; lots of climbing in a short distance is the order of the day. A long walk at its heart, I follow the standard plan of walking up hills and running down. I later find out that the event is called off in the early hours of Sunday morning for the first time in the Fellsman’s history; it is also the first time the event is held so early in the year. Prior to the race I tell my friend Garry that I will retire if I don’t beat 1 hour 30 for this race. On the run up the first hill I started walking and it starts to look like this will be my last race. Luckily I picked up at the top of Whetherlam and was able to run around to Coniston; then relying on the runner ahead for the descent proved a poor method as I saw runners flying down the hill 100yds to my right. I finished over 1 hour 30 but did not retire; I still have not thought of an excuse as to why not. This was my chance to beat Simone; he didn’t turn up so I won. He had another phantom injury. I estimated I could run at an average of 6 miles an hour and remarkably that is what I did. Paul Jackson had put the team entry in for this one using my (good) name. Snow still clung to the slopes of Helvellyn, which is not normal for May. We completed the course painlessly although Paul did slow towards the end as his chest felt tight; a heart attack perhaps or a bad curry the night before. It turns out I was once again a member of the winning team; the only problem being that I was not a member of the ‘Dark Peak’. My first MTC (Multi-Terrain Championship) race of the 2012/13 season and I had aspirations to win it. The recently married Neil Kelly appeared to be my main rival for the PLS championship. I went with the slow start and ended up just behind a man who fell over a stile and got his arm caught, rather painfully looking, on a barbed wire fence (I did not push him). I stood around while people tended to him, then as others continued with the race I followed suit. To my surprise I quickly caught up with Neil, then passed him. It seems married life has slowed Neil down. I had wanted to do this race for many years, and finally got around to it. The concept is quite simple; two laps of the village (to break the field up) then a 5 mile slog uphill. I like running uphill as it is about pace and fitness; as opposed to running downhill which is painful and involves getting very out of breath in my case. I was very pleased to be running passed people on the second half of the climb who clearly had legs of lead and had resorted to walking. At the top I was able to get refreshments and then jog downhill at a leisurely pace. I even got a T-shirt for my 10euro entry fee. Back in blighty and our traditional weather, rain, greeted me at the start of the next MTC race. A relatively small number of PLS runners turned up for the event and the rains stopped in time for the race start. I got a surprisingly high finish and full marks for the MTC. The wet weather continued and it was disappointing, but no surprise, to hear that the Welsh 1000m A-Race would no longer be going over the Carnedau or Glyder Fawr. I opted to drop down to the shorter fell race, with the Welsh castles in mind, and surprisingly won it. A mass of cars appeared on the car park as the race time approached. Mrs Balmer turned up just before the start to collect my car key; it seemed that Mal had been delayed due to the
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